Word of the
Day for Monday 9th June 2014
Prate \ preyt \,
verb;
1. To talk excessively and pointlessly; babble: They prated on until I
was ready to scream .
2.
To utter in empty or foolish talk: to prate absurdities with the
greatest seriousness .
noun:
1. Act of prating.
2.
Empty or foolish talk.
Quotes:
"...What is prudence but avarice? What is generosity but a deceit? And
yet men prate of themselves as if they were deities."
-- Anonymous, Herbert Wendall: A Tale of the Revolution, 1835
The stones of Cambridge no longer prate of thy whereabout! Death hath
removed thee,—may it not be to that bourne where alone thy oaths can
be outdone!
-- Edward Bulwer-Lytton, Pelham: or, Adventures of a Gentleman, 1828
Origin:
Prate finds its roots in the Middle Dutch praeten meaning "to speak."
It came to English during the time when Middle English was spoken.
Thanks to: www.dictionary.com
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